Georgia Nonprofit NEWS | April 2019

Impact

> Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta opened a brand new, $9 million, 25,000-square-foot facility on Atlanta’s Westside. Called the John H. Harland Boys & Girls Club: The Innovation & Expression Studio, it will serve more than 200 youth each day, and is the first arts and innovation center for the nationwide Boys & Girls Clubs organization.

To help nonprofits get ready for the 2020 Census, the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta is focusing its 2019 Civic Engagement Fund grant-cycle on Census preparation; applications are due April 24.

With the release of their annual report, GEEARS is celebrating their 2018 impact totals, including 300-plus fact sheets, early childhood profiles, and custom cookies distributed to Georgia legislators; 4,285 visits to their new, online Build My Brain course; 31 presentations delivered across the nation; and more.

For their first Care Day of 2019, HomeAid Atlanta and volunteers from Brightwater Homes made needed improvements to Our House facilities in Decatur, contributing more than $3,000 in materials and sweat equity.

> The SunTrust Foundation awarded a $5 million grant to the Westside Future Fund to support affordable housing and economic development initiatives.

Wells Fargo announced that its 2018 giving totals in Georgia amounted to $16.4 million in grants (600 of them) and $1.4 million in individual donations made by the company’s Georgia team members.

Atlanta Audubon Society awarded two Habitat Restoration Fund Grants in March: one to the Candler Park Conservancy to restore a wetland habitat, and the other to the DeKalb Master Gardener Association to implement habitat improvements at Henderson Park.

> At a presentation in March, clients of the Frazer Center demonstrated the skills they learned through specially-designed classes at the Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education; the ongoing partnership between the two agencies is supported by the Building Community Network, an initiative led by GCN and The Home Depot Foundation.

The Construction Education Foundation of Georgia welcomed more than 5,900 students from across Georgia to their Career Expo, where they learned about careers in the building industry from professionals at more than 300 businesses.

Achievements

Enduring Hearts is celebrating its 5th anniversary, and $4 million in research grants awarded.

Susan G. Komen Greater Atlanta received $50,000 from the Georgia Center for Oncology Research and Education, and $25,000 from The Billi Marcus Foundation, to help fund the Komen Atlanta Treatment Assistance Program.

> 21st Century Leaders kicked off its 30th anniversary with their annual Georgia Youth Leadership Awards, recognizing the community work of 21 high school students.

Atlanta Audubon Society received a grant from the Georgia Ornithological Society to implement approximately 10 acres of bird-friendly habitat restoration at Big Creek Greenway in Alpharetta.

At its seventh annual Second Century Breakfast fundraiser, the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta raised $1.25 million.

The International Rescue Committee in Atlanta is celebrating its 40th anniversary.

HomeAid Atlanta received a $5,000 grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation in support of its HomeAid Care Days and Essentials Drive.

> Atlanta Ronald McDonald House Charities celebrated its 40th anniversary on March 11.

On March 15, Georgia Power hosted the first Georgia Housing Conversation event at the Georgia Aquarium, where representatives from The Georgia Conservancy’s Sustainable Growth Program spoke on the availability of affordable housing.

Turner Broadcasting System was honored by the Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta (PBPA) with their Corporation of the Year Award, recognizing their contributions of time and legal expertise to Atlanta-area nonprofits; since 2006, 76 Turner volunteers have worked on 267 projects for PBPA.

The Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation received a $400,000 grant from the Kresge Foundation to expand their Standing With Our Neighbors program, which helps fight evictions, displacement, and harmful living conditions.

> The Giving Kitchen is this year’s recipient of the James Beard Foundation’s Humanitarian of the Year Award.

People

North Fulton Community Charities welcomed new Director of Assistance Services Carol Swan.

Central Atlanta Progress has named Eddie Meyers as their new board chair.

Penny Collins was named the new president and CEO of Women in Technology.

The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta added welcomed Bert Clark, Doug Hooker, and Howard Palefsky to their board.

Atlanta Habitat for Humanity President and CEO Lisa Y. Gordon has been named the new board chair of Urban Land Institute Atlanta.

Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta Program Associate Lauren Jeong was named the Certified Nonprofit Professional Emerging Leader of the Year by the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance.

The Piedmont Park Conservancy welcomed Stephanie Motter to the role of marketing coordinator.

GCN Highlights

With support from GCN EVP and Senior Consultant Kathy Keeley and Consultant Tommy Pearce, strategic planning at the Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services is well underway.

Senior Consultant Elizabeth Runkle and Consultant Pearce have begun conducting market research for Camp Kudzu. (If your agency works with or knows any parents of children with Type 1 Diabetes in Clayton County, Savannah, Albany, Moultrie, or Valdosta, please reach out to [email protected].)

On April 11, EVP and Senior Consultant Keeley will be leading a new class, Social Enterprise for Today’s Nonprofit, including an overview of the model and what to consider when starting a social enterprise.

In March, Senior Consultant Keeley led a two-day Results Based Accountability course for nonprofits in Northeast Georgia, funded by the United Way of Northeast Georgia, the University of Georgia, the Athens Area Community Foundation, and Athens-Clarke County.

The Nonprofit Consulting Group is also helping complete strategic plans for Community Farmers Markets and The Scholarship Academy; Consultant Pearce designed an index ranking public high schools in the Academy’s market to serve as a planning data point.

GCN Consulting put together a statistical framework, including data from focus groups in 13 counties, to help the board at United Way of Northeast Georgia select three priority areas for their new impact-investment approach: Early Childhood Learning, Workforce Development, and Basic Needs.

Consulting has also been busy interviewing Girl Scout troop leaders; reviewing data and trends related to girls, volunteerism, and the role of Girl Scouts; and (yes) buying Girl Scout Cookies as part of an environmental scan for the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta.

A joint project among the Enterprise Foundation, NeighborWorks, Georgia Advancing Communities Together, and GCN Consulting was recently completed, providing assessments and consulting for community development nonprofits and affordable housing developers in the areas of growth and capacity-building.

Alongside a national coalition, GCN VP Communications Betsy Reid took to Capitol Hill on March 29 to ask members of Congress to support legislation that repeals a new 21-percent tax on the parking and transit benefits provided by tax-exempt organizations (the Unrelated Business Income Tax). Find more information here.

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This blog is presented by the Georgia Center for Nonprofits. GCN builds thriving communities by helping nonprofits succeed. Through a powerful mix of advocacy, solutions for nonprofit effectiveness, and insight building tools, we provide nonprofits, board members and donors with the tools they need to strengthen organizations that make a difference on important causes throughout Georgia. Editorial Guidelines